Ahh, the Start Menu – that familiar friend we’ve all come to know and love (or hate) over the years. Well, buckle up, folks, because Microsoft has given it a bit of a facelift in Windows 11, and I’m here to take you on a guided tour.
As the good folks on Reddit have pointed out, the new Start Menu is a bit of a departure from what we’re used to. Gone are the days of live tiles and a cluttered interface. Instead, Microsoft has gone for a more streamlined approach, with a focus on simplicity and organization.
The Pinned Area
Let’s start with the Pinned area – this is where you’ll find all your go-to apps, neatly arranged and ready to launch at a moment’s notice. As Paul Thurrott notes, you can now even pin folders to the Start Menu, making it a breeze to group related apps together. That’s a neat little trick that I’ve been enjoying, especially for those of us with a penchant for organizing our digital lives.
The Recommended Area
Next up, we have the Recommended area – a curious amalgamation of recent documents and recently-installed apps. As our friends on the r/windows12 subreddit have pointed out, this area can be a bit of a mixed bag. On the one hand, it’s handy to have quick access to the things you’ve been working on. But on the other, it can feel a bit cluttered and disorganized if you’re not the type to keep a tidy desktop.
Fortunately, Microsoft has provided a bit of a workaround – you can now customize the layout of the Start Menu to your liking, choosing between “More Pins,” “Default,” or “More Recommendations.” It’s a small but welcome addition, and it’s nice to see Microsoft listening to user feedback.
Gestures and Folders
One of the other notable changes is the addition of new gestures for touch-based devices. As Thurrott points out, you can now swipe up from the middle bottom of the display to show or hide the Start Menu, and swipe left and right on the Pinned area to toggle between the Pinned apps and the All Apps view. It’s a small but intuitive addition that should make navigating the Start Menu a breeze for our touch-savvy friends.
And let’s not forget about the new folder support. As Thurrott notes, you can now group your apps together in folders, just like the good old days. It’s a simple feature, but one that can really help keep your Start Menu organized and tidy.
A Work in Progress
Now, I’ll be honest, the new Start Menu isn’t perfect. As our friends on the r/windows12 subreddit have pointed out, there are still a few quirks and limitations that Microsoft needs to iron out. The inability to completely remove the Recommended area, for example, is a bit of a bummer for those of us who prefer a more minimalist approach.
But, you know what they say – Rome wasn’t built in a day. And I have a feeling that the folks at Microsoft are hard at work, listening to user feedback and constantly iterating on the Start Menu experience. After all, they’ve got a lot riding on Windows 11, and they know that the Start Menu is a critical part of the user experience.
So, while the new Start Menu might not be perfect, I’m cautiously optimistic that it’s headed in the right direction. And who knows, maybe the next time I come back to itFix to have my computer repaired, the Start Menu will have received an even more impressive makeover. One can dream, right?
